simoncsays

I'm in the market for a new bike and want something that is versatile and comfortable to ride. I'll likely ride mostly paved roads with light trail thrown in. I've narrowed in on the Specialized Crosstrail, Sirrus and Canyon Pathlite models. I've done test rides with all of these except for the Pathlite and am leaning towards having the suspension fork. It provides that extra bit of comfort especially riding around pave city roads that aren't that maintained that well but does give up a little speed which I think I'm ok with. I like the idea of the Sirrus but it was too road bike like for me (I had a Cannondale CAAD10 before) but still not entirely off the table. Seems like most recommend the rigid fork but for me I just can't help but lean towards a bike with front suspension for now.

The Crosstrail seems to be a bit underwhelming in terms of the specs for the money. I'm searching for used models but I'm a little picky on the color scheme but they don't seem to pop up that often.

In comes the Canyon Pathlite. Looks great in terms of components and the color scheme is what I'm looking for (black on black). They currently offer 2 trim levels (7.0 vs 6.0) and seem pretty similarly spec'd. Is the 7.0 worth the $200 delta over the 6.0? Currently both are on sale for $999 and $799 respectively which seems like a great deal with much better components over the competition. Still feels like a lot of money for what I'm using it for. I would buy the 6.0 if it had the black on black color scheme of the 7.0 but not sure it's worth it.

Any feedback is welcomed!

CarloM

Full disclosure: I went down to Carlsbad and rode Canyon bikes a few weekends ago. I rode a Grail, Aeroad and Endurace. All were great bikes. All put stupid smiles on my face. And yes, Canyon's business model allows them to price their bikes cheaper than comparably spec'd bikes from others who go the dealer route.

TL;DR - if your major consideration is "bang for buck" and you don't mind setting up and working on your own bikes (or paying for service), then my opinion is to go with the Canyon. They know what they're doing, they make great bikes, and the savings are real.

That said, I went with a Trek and Cannondale from my LBS (on Mem Day and 4th sales, so I bridged the price gap a bit) because I live within walking distance of the LBS, I've created a great relationship with them, and they've basically adjusted and tweaked my bikes free of charge and the manager always knocks 10-20% of accessories I buy. I am comfortable doing light maintenance on my bike for anything major, I wanted that relationship established with my LBS. But that's a choice that's highly individual to me.

badger1

There are two (2) differences between the 7.0 and 6.0: the 7.0 has a significantly better/lighter fork, and significantly better/lighter brakes.

Whether you would notice this difference -- and the consequent 1.5 - 2 lbs. difference in all-up weight -- is down to you/how you ride. FWIW I would, but you might not. The 7.0 would likely be a bit more usable off-road. If you plan to ride off-road extensively, you might notice enough to make the $200 difference worthwhile.

FWIW, I think both bikes are fantastic, and fantastic value. Were I in the U.S., a 7.0 would be my current (new) bike.* The only caveat: make damn sure you are buying the correct size. That's the one downside to Canyon's online/direct sales: you can't try before the buy.

*If they were available in Canada, in fact, the Euro-spec 8.0 version would be my new bike: XT throughout, and DT Swiss wheelset. Oh well; we can't get any of them so it's all moot.

berner

In the long run, when you end a long hard ride, you will be thinking about how satisfying that ride was. While how much we spend for that satisfaction is part of the equation, mostly our thoughts will be on the satisfation and not on the money.